The Life expectancy for men in Northumberland has fallen, as statistics suggest that they are expected to live till 79-years-old.

Office for National Statistics data shows that in Northumberland, a boy born between 2018 and 2020 is expected to live until they are 79.3 years old, which is a decrease from the 2015-17 report which had an average expectancy of 79.4.

Meanwhile, life expectancy from birth for females rose from 82.7 to 82.9 between the two periods.

Statisticians have blamed the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, but said the figures do not necessarily mean those born in recent years will go on to live a shorter life.

Pamela Cobb, of the ONS centre for ageing and demography, said: “Life expectancy has increased in the UK over the last 40 years, albeit at a slower pace in the last decade.

However, the Coronavirus pandemic led to a greater number of deaths than normal in 2020.

Consequently, in the latest estimates, we see virtually no improvement in life expectancy for women, while for men life expectancy has fallen back to levels reported for 2012 to 2014.

This is the first time we have seen a decline when comparing non-overlapping time periods since the series began in the early 1980s."

Although the report is reflecting the whole of the UK, the North East is the biggest drop in male life expectancy between 2015-17 and 2018-20 – down 17 weeks to 77.6 years, while Northern Ireland saw the largest rise, up 12 weeks to 78.7 years. 

In terms of female life expectancy, Wales and the West Midlands saw the biggest drops in life expectancy, down 10 weeks to 82.1 and 82.5 years respectively. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, in the South West, female life expectancy rose 17 weeks to 84.1 years.In the North East, the figure rose by four weeks to 81.6 years.The ONS said this was another example of the impact of Coronavirus in 2020, with the South West recording lower male and female Covid-19 mortality rates than other regions.

Ms Cobb added: "The ONS also said the figures did not necessarily mean a baby born between 2018 and 2020 will live a shorter life, with the estimates based on the "unusually high" levels of deaths.“Once the coronavirus pandemic has ended and its consequences for future mortality are known, it is possible that life expectancy will return to an improving trend in the future,"